Background checks and gun regulations will do little good if criminals can print high-capacity magazines at home. 3-D printing is a new technology that shows great promise, but also requires new guidelines. Law enforcement officials should have the power to stop high-capacity magazines from proliferating with a Google search.

It seems that Congressman Israel doesn't realize that background checks and gun regulations both in the United States and just over America's border with Mexico, already don't work - without advanced manufacturing and open source paradigms even playing a role.

Criminals intent on breaking laws have existed since laws themselves. Additionally, technology like 3D printing, as Forbes correctly points out, will pose a serious challenge to gun control advocates in terms of enforcement.

Forbes stated specifically:

But for either [Congresswoman Diane] Feinstein or Israel’s bill, the same problem arises: How to enforce that prohibition in every garage and workshop in America that houses a 3D printer.

Of course, without becoming Nazi Germany or Stalin's Soviet Union, or something far worse, there is no way to enforce these gun regulations. Criminals in particular will continue discarding the law, and because of the government's refusal to actually tackle the socioeconomic factors driving violence and its insistence on instead punishing law abiding citizens, their authority, legitimacy, and ability to enforce even sensible legislation will be compromised.

And 3D manufacturing isn't the only way to build your own gun. As a matter of fact, around the world where criminals are unable to buy guns, they do indeed already make their own - and then, as criminals are compelled to do, commit crimes with them, including murder.

Image: This homemade handgun was made by an unruly Thai party-goer who claimed the life of a British tourist this New Year's Eve. Despite the ubiquitous nature of guns, both homemade and manufactured in Thailand, and nearly no means of enforcing whatever legislation may or may not be on the books, gun violence (and violence overall) is still less than in the United States.

In Thailand, vocational schools are plagued by fierce gang-style rivalries. With standard tools, these students construct homemade guns which they frequently murder each other with. And just this New Year's Eve, a British tourist was killed when a fight broke out at a party, and a homemade gun was fired. The difference between a Thai vocational education, and say a German or Japanese vocational education is one of culture and socioeconomics - not access to tools.

Preventing people from manufacturing guns, or worse yet, from possessing or using tools that can be used to create guns, is both ludicrous and impossible. Like with cars or anything else, laws are there to ensure we don't harm others by abusing any given right or implement - not preventing us from having those rights or implements responsibly in the first place. In the end, one must address the factors in any given society that drive large numbers of people to commit violent crimes in the first place - regardless of their chosen means or method.

In reality, an honest public representative would already be far too busy improving education, infrastructure, and the economic prospects of their people to waste time on banning every conceivable implement that could be used in a crime, directly or indirectly. The goal of Congress members like Feinstein or Israel, is not to prevent violence - but to simply disarm the population as the corporate-financier interests they represent seek to be further unhindered as they loot people and nations both abroad and at home.

The fact that the White House is taking such bold actions against "guns," citing "mass shootings" which account for a fraction of 1% of all homicides, indicates a far more insidious agenda - and one based not on real priorities, but built upon a carefully exploited, emotional campaign to exact an obvious but not forthcoming final goal.

Get Involved.

Defense Distributed has a website - DefCAD.org - and the files for building their various designs available for downloading and use - for free. The files are in .IGS format and require a computer aided design program (CAD) to view them. FreeCAD is an open source, free to download program that works well. This is where, again, a local hackerspace pooling people's resources together would help infinitely, especially when most hackerspaces come equipped with 3D printers and people capable of operating them and more importantly, capable of teaching you how to use them.

Right now, there seems to be only Defense Distributed pursuing this project in any meaningful manner - which should be a cause of concern for anyone who thinks this is a good idea. One group of people working on this alone is a giant, slow-moving target prone to failure from both within and beyond. Many people working on this in parallel, however, presents the same problem the movie and music industry face with file sharing - impossible victory/inevitable defeat.

Starting your own open source "distributed defense" group would be a good way to hedge the risk of having just one group coordinating efforts toward developing open source firearms accessible to all. DefCAD could be infiltrated, co-opted, or derailed in so many conceivable ways considering the implications the work it is doing have, it would be foolish not to hedge such risk.

The lack of direct participation in preserving our rights, and instead depending on lobbyists and protesters alone to to do it for us is one problem. Another problem is the purposeful polarization of the "gun debate" - of gun advocates and their critics along predictable political lines. The Washington Post, which is ironically run by a right-wing Neo-Con editorial board, recently celebrated President Obama's "clever" use of the Constitution to turn the gun debate on its head. It also noted gleefully that part of the plan was getting the "people" themselves to demand stricter gun control. This will be done by getting half of America (the left) to take the guns away from the other half (the right).

Faux right-wing leaders take particular care in ensuring that to be a "gun rights activist," you must also be a xenophobic crypto-racist, Islamophobic, and a conservative who believes the problem facing the world are closet-Communist liberals. Likewise, the faux left's leadership ensures that their followers believe conservatives, their religion, and their guns are the root of all problems. In reality, the corporate-financiers run both sides of the debate and direct the talking points of prominent personalities on both the faux-left and faux-right.

Obviously, instead of digging in and playing along, our goal should be to reach across the aisle and close this artificial divide - by abandoning the leaders claiming to represent our particular political proclivities and working together to address the true causes of violence - social injustice, socioeconomic decay, and inadequate, impractical education.

Getting involved includes creating local institutions that find common ground and reject this artificial polarization - common ground that includes improving education, health care, and local economic prospects, which in turn reduces violence and leaves only responsible people with firearms (and the means to make them). Local efforts must be apolitical and all-inclusive - because if we are reduced to talking politics, it is because we don't have a pragmatic solution to solve our problems.

DefCAD has a pragmatic solution - leveraging tangible, modern technology to ensure our rights are not trampled upon by insidious politicians. Taking away guns is not an option politically, and soon, not an option practically. All sides who truly seek to reduce the violence in society will be forced to look elsewhere for the solution. Since guns were never the problem to begin with, the advent of 3D printed guns and the insurmountable deterrence they present to "gun control," may be a blessing in disguise for all who seek a more peaceful and just world.

If guns are taken away from law abiding citizens who, are simply trying to protect themselves from an out-of-control government then, the battle lines are being drawn as we speak.

Gun are but one way to fight an enemy of the state. There are many, many, compounds, chemicals, fuels, implements, booby traps and non-fired weapons that will never be under ANY government control and can kill and destroy better than a gun. A simple newspaper can kill multiple people if used by a knowledgable attacker...so outlaw that!

The thing about a gun is...you have to be a good shot to hit anything. Even with a semi automatic. The cops can't hit a moving target unless there are 30 of them firing at the same time!

Lanza wasn't alone on his killing spree, the Russians have satellite photos of 3 people shooting their way into that school. So, isn't that interesting?

Zionist Jews are trying to disarm America because, they know we know they have been the cause of all our financial, economic, social, and foreign policy problems!

Our military will need to honor the oath of loyalty they took to protect America and take these traitors down, thereby restoring the Republic to where it needs to be.

The American Public is the power behind America's greatness...not these rouge leaders and Zionist Jews that have been stealing our wealth and causing such turmoil. They need to be dealt with now!

The LOWER receiver (on an AR15) is the only portion of the entire weapon that a "gun ban" would apply to. It is the serialized part which constitutes it to be a "firearm." Even with a weapon ban in place, every single other part of the gun can be purchased, therefore, you need only to perfect the building of the lower receiver, along with quality magazines if they are banned, as well.

Wow! You propagandized-from-birth, cartoon cut-out versions of thoughtful, serious people don't even pretend to apply logic when you become involved in any discussion that challenges your delusions or the “official stories” you uncritically accept when told to do so by your Masters and their minions in the MSM!

Instead you heap up the non sequiturs like piles of poo in a dirty barnyard hoping against hope we won't notice that you never deal with the issues and points raised while you’re whining or hurling insults at people whose arguments you only dimly understand, if you understand them at all.

I honestly believe that it has nothing to do with your level of intelligence or even your willingness or not to engage in an honest debate. I believe it has everything to do with how you receive your information and the tools you have been provided with throughout your abysmal indoctrination/miseducation by people who have never felt anything but contempt for who you are or what you’re capable of thinking, given the opportunity and the skill sets required to think independently.

Read more - from a wider variety of sources. Learn how to recognize reputable sources of information. Exercise your b_llsh_t meter muscle that lives between your ears because it gets stronger as you use it more, just like any other muscle.

And as you learn more you’ll tire of engaging in ad hominem attacks based on uncritically agreeing with the accepted and approved opinions handed down to those of you willing to listen by our world’s self-declared Masters, their agent provocateurs and their willing sheep bleating like you are right this minute. I can guarantee it. Because that’s what has happened to me.

Just because criminals can use technology to print guns, we just give up and make everything legal????????????????????????????

Nonsense. This is the logical fallacy of reductio absurdum. By making irrational laws about pieces of plastic and metal, anyone can be decreed a "criminal". Such laws decree everyone guilty until proven innocent. You are advocating guilt until proven innocent which I think can be argued to be anti-freedom/anti-liberty.

Again, you over generalize. I don't own a gun. I support exchange of ideas and freedom of speech. The Constitution explicitly guarantees the right to arms. I support the intention or right to arms behind the Constitution.

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

People can print money with a good computer and a good printer.Should we just give up and make counterfeiting legal?

Irrelevant diversion from the topic of 3D printing and gun control.

People can view violent evil pornography and print that too. Should that be legal?

Irrelevant diversion from the topic of 3D printing and gun control. Go look up the Franklin Child Sex Ring and the recent BBC coverup going on over Jimmy Saville. Bringing up pornography is a casting dispersions, which is evil to do in itself.

How about printing a fake drivers licenses? Sure, and the gun nuts response to that would be do do away with all driver licensing.....using the same 'logic'."

Why exactly do you think you have to have a drivers license? Again, I don't own a gun. I do have a driver's license. You've placed everyone under the same category of 'gun nut.' I support freedom. Only an idiot would believe more reactionary laws, that address a symptom and not the disease, make a person more free.

Unfortunately, most people make decisions based on their emotions rather than sound argument.

Where do you get a 3D gun/magazine printer? Mine just does paper. Anyway; The 3D stuff is already out there for people to share- to late to have it banned. Few have access to the needed tools to do this work anyway. Just glue 3 -10 round mags together. LOL.

First 3d printer I seen used was some 15 years ago and we called it a Digital cad cnc formulator.primitive ro todays but using polymers we could build you any part you needed as a model for whatever you were building special hinged or 3" whatever taper then flare whatever. Even the parts for actual heart valves.Newest tech way beyon that junk. Today multi material printers available from metallic to polymers, just transmit tooling dimensions to. Printerfeedright material and voila I could build a fully functionind SAW ( squad auto weapon) minus its barrel and bulletsAnother programtobuild the polymer cases for shells and why not environmentally friendly bullets. Non lead.A PLASTIC extruder presently injection molds lower sections and even trigger assemblys for ARs.But get off yourass and invest in those compaies that make them because they are cheap and every dn person can make just about whatever you want with them. No need for massive factories to make toys you make a spiderman or barby in your shop.REBUILD old cars clocks watches pianos radios whatever you can build your own.Jay leno bought one for restoring his collection of rareautos.This invention now 2000 USD WITH ONE PROJECT PROGRAM can change production methods world wide and upset old line industrial practices on their butts.Can't make a diamondbut you can make any caratgold band with a polmer stone that has lots of bling.

"Criminals intent on breaking laws have existed since laws themselves. Additionally, technology like 3D printing, as Forbes correctly points out, will pose a serious challenge to gun control advocates in terms of enforcement.....Of course, without becoming Nazi Germany or Stalin's Soviet Union, or something far worse, there is no way to enforce these gun regulations. Criminals in particular will continue discarding the law"

This printing guns issue has the same dynamic as counterfeiting money or printing illegal porn. The simplistic desperate lies of the gun lobby seem to work on its target audience of people with lower than average intelligence. Tragic.

It's far to interesting this way. Do I believe the great conspiracy? Yes and no. The answer lies within human nature.

You can either see the government as a large group of blunders or see them as logistical masterminds which have yet to complete their goals.

I personally do not care. My concept is simple. Whether evil or incompetent, my enemy is the enemy that has presented itself to me.

The one for whatever reason, think it needed I be wise and lower my guard, my defenses before there immutiple concept of ever lasting peace.. If only I would just trust this blow hard.

I think not. There is only one person I can absolutely trust, whether he be trustworthy or a complete fuckup, I know him well and can predict his movements. He is whom I shall retenlessly safegaurd or let die if that is his will.

But no other shall I ever trust enough to believe their words, that I should let down my guard. To trust that I will never be betrayed by them.

That I can live a better life having them know that if they betray me, I have full recourse.

I wonder what Sara Brady and all her extremest progressive guncontrol mind control freak friends in congress would be doing if Jasmes Hinkley had run her husband over with an old Desoto or beat him crippled with a ball Peen Hammer. insteasd of shooting him or id the kids in Newtown Connecticut had been all set on fire or runover with a mack dump truck or even a simple pipe bomb.

Many don’t seem to understand that 3D printing is an advance technology that has been around a very long time … and the 3D copy of these objects are just as real and just as workable as any made in a manufacturing company …

This is a terrible thing if it is set loosed in mainstream capability … mainstream is still in a very vulnerable state of consciousness ..

But here we go again … if once e sect of people are allowed to 3D printing weapons .. then so should the other sect … this is a plan of the diabolical cabal … getting weapons in the hand of mainstream any way they can … and then set back instigate the violence and let mainstream destroy mainstream …

This whole thing is a god damn sick joke, really, I mean I Can take a fscking METAL 10 round clip cut the top and bottom off and make a METAL 60 round clip, (I would probably do 30 and beef up the spring) but more than likely something will jam before you hit 20 rounds regardless of if it's a 30, or 60 round clip. ducktape two 10 round clips back to back and you have 20 rounds. This whole thing is a joke, if the government is out of control, and the PEOPLE have to take it all down (as per the Constitution), what the fsck do you care if the clip you use is 7 rounds or 700?

People can print money with a good computer and a good printer. Should we just give up and make counterfeiting legal?”

Counterfeiting has been legalized you fool, but only for the criminal syndicate otherwise known as the Federal Reserve. It’s just scraps of paper with ink on it; all contrary to Article 1 Section 10 of the constitution.

“People can view violent evil pornography and print that too. Should that be legal?”

What’s illegal about it? Isn’t that being done on a daily basis? Hustler comes to mind.

“How about printing a fake drivers licenses? Sure, and the gun nuts response to that would be do do away with all driver licensing.....using the same 'logic'.”

The government can only regulate commerce, not your rights. If you are not for hire, not “driving” as in the commercial act of being an “operator” transporting property for hire, or a “chauffer” transporting people for hire, what then about your right to liberty? Should you have to give up your “right to liberty” for the “privilege of driving? You have all been deceived into giving up your rights.

It’s ignorant people like you who have lost all reason, logic, common sense and you make life difficult for those of us who do not want to give in to the communists who have already overthrown this country/ government and yet I’m sure that it is people like you who think that their vote counts.

People can print money with a good computer and a good printer. Should we just give up and make counterfeiting legal?”

Counterfeiting has been legalized you fool, but only for the criminal syndicate otherwise known as the Federal Reserve. It’s just scraps of paper with ink on it; all contrary to Article 1 Section 10 of the constitution.

“People can view violent evil pornography and print that too. Should that be legal?”

What’s illegal about it? Isn’t that being done on a daily basis? Hustler comes to mind.

“How about printing a fake drivers licenses? Sure, and the gun nuts response to that would be do do away with all driver licensing.....using the same 'logic'.”

The government can only regulate commerce, not your rights. If you are not for hire, not “driving” as in the commercial act of being an “operator” transporting property for hire, or a “chauffer” transporting people for hire, what then about your right to liberty? Should you have to give up your “right to liberty” for the “privilege of driving? You have all been deceived into giving up your rights.

It’s ignorant people like you who have lost all reason, logic, common sense and you make life difficult for those of us who do not want to give in to the communists who have already overthrown this country/ government and yet I’m sure that it is people like you who think that their vote counts.

"Just because criminals can use technology to print guns, we just give up and make everything legal????????????????????????????"

Err, why should owning a gun be illegal in the first place? What is wrong, what is bad, what is ALREADY ILLEGAL is using a gun to MURDER someone. It is not only illegal, but across the board, everyone on all sides agree that it should be illegal.

ANYTHING can be turned into a deadly weapons - and because of that people shouldn't be allowed to use anything responsibly? Cars, alcohol and tobacco and their abuse and misuse kill WAY more people than guns - do we ban them too? No, you penalize people that abuse them - same for guns.

A responsible person - no matter what they print in their 3D printers, is not a harm to society. It is the irresponsible, criminals, and mischief makers who will abuse it and use it to hurt people - but they are already doing so without the aid of 3D printing technology.

9/11 Questions

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